Banks Are Trying To Help

Top U.S. banks and thrifts tried harder in the second quarter to modify problem loans, but that didnâ€™t keep more home owners from falling into foreclosure.

Lenders modified 112,353 first-lien mortgages, an increase of 56 percent from the previous quarter, according to data, issued jointly by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Office of Thrift Supervision.

Meanwhile, new foreclosures rose to 288,740 in the second quarter from 278,857 the previous quarter.

This data represents about 60 percent of all mortgages outstanding. At the end of June, the 14 institutions covered in the report serviced more than 34.7 million first mortgage loans, totaling $6.1 trillion in outstanding balances.